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Intero Insider: Good News for Employed AND Unemployed

By Gino Blefari | August 17th, 2010 0 Comments

In times of economic hardship, most news tends to focus on the bad stuff: unemployment, consumer spending, consumer confidence, slow economic growth. This may be why a recent economic story in The New York Times caught my eye: “For Those With Jobs, a Recession With Benefits.”

The headline says it all – the silver lining. It seems obvious, but for those lucky enough to still be employed, these are great times to be a consumer.

Just look at interest rates for mortgages. If you’re employed and looking to buy a house, you’re part of a group of borrowers who will lock in rates so low even buyers from a few months ago would cry. 4.375% percent (APR 4.579%) on a 30-year fixed!! That is something to brag about. Even an $8,000 home buyer tax credit cannot beat the savings achieved on these borrowing costs.

Further tipping the scales in favor of today’s employed are wages. According to the NYT article, “The typical jobless person has been out of work six months. The typical worker has received a raise.” Since the start of the recession in December 2007, real average hourly pay has risen nearly 5 percent.

This is obviously bad news for those who have been out of work for some time. But again, the bright side: Rising wages are good news for housing. And while the market may not see a huge pop from this right away, higher wages at least provide confidence for those buyers who are in the market today, and those sellers who are hoping for a match.

Remember: Every home sale needs just one qualified buyer. Your pool of buyers starts to increase with every job that is secured.

A lifeboat for unemployed homeowners

But even amid bad times for the jobless, there was some good news out of Washington last week. The Obama Administration is prepping $3 billion in financial assistance to aid homeowners in the states most affected by unemployment.

The assistance program will send $2 billion in aid to state Housing Finance Agencies for programs for borrowers who are struggling to make payments due to job loss. Another $1 billion in aid will come from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to provide up to 24 months of assistance to homeowners who are at risk of foreclosure.

So you see, it’s not all bad right now. Let’s hope it works!

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Intero Insider: Wait – I Still Owe What?

By Gino Blefari | April 21st, 2010 0 Comments

Each day, the news brings us tiny glimmers of hope that the economic woes that have turned the real estate market into a morass of unpalatable realities might just be behind us. Each day, however, there seem to be items served alongside those glimmers that give me pause.

These items, after making me take several deep breaths, have me advising my clients, customers, and Intero agents that patience will be the better part of valor when it comes to economic recovery.

We know that millions of Americans, and lots and lots of Californians among them, have lost their homes to foreclosure. Going through that process is more difficult than most people can possibly imagine. It’s a pride-swallowing siege that affects every aspect of your life. Once it’s done, however, it’s done and, typically, people can begin the process of rebuilding their lives.

Unless they can’t.

What if, after going through a foreclosure and having a mortgage discharged, you also have a second mortgage to pay? What then?

California is a non-recourse state. This means that any loan taken for the purpose of buying a home is discharged once a foreclosure has taken place. Debt collectors cannot pursue borrowers for loans in default that were used to purchase a home.

Loans that were taken for other purposes? Lenders can, and often do, do whatever it takes to collect what is owed.

If a second mortgage was taken and that money was used to help finance the purchase of a home, then it’s non-recourse debt. But often, banks and lenders won’t tell the borrowers that. There’s a loophole in the legal speak that governs such things that says that there’s nothing preventing the borrower from “voluntarily” repaying the debt. So lots of people who’re not under an obligation to repay find themselves on the receiving end of dunning calls and letters and struggling to make payments when and where they can.

If a second mortgage was taken and it was not used as part of a home purchase? Well, those monies are due and payable, regardless.

Whether lenders will try and collect is another matter altogether.

In California alone, almost $500 billion in home equity lines of credit (or other such loans) were taken out by homeowners. Banks are going to collect when and where they can. Sadly, a borrower’s personal net worth may be the deciding factor in their decision to pursue or not to pursue.

So, what are the options?

Well, one is to pay the debt if you’re able. If you can’t, my best advice would be to consult with an attorney to discuss your options.  You may find your attorney will tell you that a short sale would allow you to negotiate part or all of your deficiency away.  If this is the case, find a certified short sale agent within any of our offices to help guide you through the process.

There are options, but it’s best to explore them sooner, rather than later. If you have concerns relating to foreclosure or your ability to borrow money to purchase a home, please consult your Intero agent. The road to recovery is a tough one, but it can be ridden. We all just have to be patient.

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Intero Insider: Did You Hear That?

By Gino Blefari | April 13th, 2010 0 Comments

A collective sigh of relief is being issued by taxpayers who’d not only lost their homes, their dreams, and large chunks of their pride, but who were staring down tax bills that they couldn’t fathom how to pay.

It might not soothe all their wounds, but a measure passed last week by the California State Legislature will, when signed by Governor Schwarzenegger, give some much-needed breathing room to the thousands of Californians who lost their homes to foreclosure or who had to sell them in a short sale.

You see, mortgage debt that is forgiven, which happens when your mortgagor allows you to sell your home short or after a foreclosure, is taxable, both federally and at the state level. A moratorium was placed on the federal tax, but in California, a state riddled with crushing debt, there were serious questions about whether the tax would be levied.

Others affected by this measure are those who got loan modifications that lessened the amount that was owed to the mortgagor.

Assuming that the governor signs the bill, which he has said he will do, it will provide relief to upwards of 100,000 Californians through 2012, when the measure is set to expire.

Our state is certainly one that needs income, and it’s estimated that California will collect about $34 million less in taxes as a result of this bill. No matter how badly the money is needed, however, generating that income at the cost of rendering our taxpayers, quite literally, penniless is too much of a price to pay.

If you’ve been involved in a foreclosure, short sale, or have had mortgage debt forgiven, you may be eligible to claim the relief on your 2009 State and federal income tax returns.

As always, whenever you have questions relating to taxes, be sure to contact your accountant or financial planner; they’ll have the best advice and will give you the proper guidance.

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Intero Insider: Why Would You Choose One Over The Other?

By Gino Blefari | March 31st, 2010 0 Comments

At a recent gathering of real estate professionals of which I was a part, a rather interesting question was posed.

“Do people choose an individual real estate agent, or do they choose the brokerage for whom they work?”

The ensuing discussion was exhaustive and filled with more than a little hot air, but it got me thinking. What really matters to our customers and clients? What really matters to you?

At Intero, we take the approach that everything matters. Everything is important. We are only as strong as our weakest link.

We take great care to hire only the best agents. And by “best”, I don’t just mean those who make lots of sales or who bring business to our offices. When I say “best”, I mean those agents who continually set higher standards for their work, to embrace innovation. I mean those who are willing to go the extra mile (and further, if necessary) for their clients and customers.

While many brokerages see fit to hire anyone with a pulse, we have no interest in merely filling our offices with bodies. At Intero, our agents are the ambassadors of our brand. They’re carrying our name out into the field and their actions, good or bad, polish or tarnish our brand accordingly. Their skill, caring, and expertise is a direct reflection on us and the sort of business we endeavor to run.

You might ask yourself, “If I have a great agent, why should it matter to me whom he works for?”

On the surface, that question makes sense. But scratch just below it, and it makes no sense at all. Why does it matter?

It matters because, when push comes to shove, you want someone who is backed up by resources. There are plenty of real estate brokerages who hire agents (more to the point, who collect fees from agents and do very little else) and send them on their merry way with a few yard signs, never to give them another thought. Is that the sort of company that you want representing you?

At Intero, we do things differently. We stand behind every one of our real estate professionals. We put the strongest resources and best technology behind them. We want everyone to know that Intero stands for quality, not just a stable of relatively warm bodies who’re doing the bare minimum. Our agents deserve our support, and our clients most certainly do as well.

Why this question should matter, why you should want both a great agent and a great brokerage is that while each is great individually, the strength generated by their combination is unbeatable. When you’re embarking on what is, arguably, one of the most important decisions — financial or otherwise — of your life, why would you settle for anything less?

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Intero Real Estate Services, Inc. sustains profitability through innovation in 2009

By Teressa Francis | March 4th, 2010 0 Comments

Leading U.S. brokerage announces 2009 profits, shares insights on successful model

CUPERTINO, SILICON VALLEY, USA  — Intero Real Estate Services (http://www.interorealestate.com), a leading U.S. real estate brokerage that has recently expanded its brand globally, as a franchisor, through Intero Franchise Services, Inc. and Intero International Franchise Services, LLC, announced today that its brokerage operation – based in California’s Silicon Valley – was profitable in 2009 despite persistent challenges in the housing sector. Intero was founded in 2002 and became one of the fastest growing companies in the history of U.S. real estate.

2009 was a challenging year in real estate. Intero executives attribute the company’s success in this environment to a long-term commitment to innovation that allowed Intero to realize efficiencies other companies were unprepared to leverage, seize opportunities before its competitors and retain productive agents and franchisees.

“Intero sprung from the cradle of innovation here in Silicon Valley, so doing things that are new, pursuing ideas that are different – it’s a spirit that is an integral part of our brand,” said Gino Blefari, Intero’s President and CEO. “While most in our industry remained static in old models which no longer worked, we decided to act – and that action is directly tied to our continued profitability.”

Bob Moles, Intero’s Chairman, added, “Increasing top line revenue growth in 2009 while at the same time growing our bottom line profit in this real estate environment, demonstrates convincingly that the Intero® brand, tools and systems are positioned to perform well even in down markets.”

Blefari offered several examples of initiatives driving Intero’s success, including:

Technology innovation: Intero aggressively pursued the mobile opportunity in 2009, resulting in greater consumer engagement and enhanced productivity for agents and franchisees. The 2009 Intero mobile initiative included a GPS-enabled listings service, a WAP (browser-based) mobile application, and a native iPhone application.

A pioneering new office model: While many real estate organizations continue to discuss a leaner, more attractive office model, the Intero Andare(sm) office concept experienced its third full year of operation. The Intero Andare office concept features a “cafe-style” workspace, a paperless work-flow and a high-tech, stylish appearance that permits brokerage operators to realize efficiencies while presenting a more compelling brand experience to consumers and agents.

An aggressive digital media strategy: Over the past three years Intero shifted 90% of its media spend from print to digital, increasing Web traffic and consumer and agent engagement. In 2009 the company accelerated this effort, launching a network of blogs, expanding its presence on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube and launching a highly successful series of email newsletters.
“The Intero® brand, with its proven formula for rapid growth and sustained profitability, has been received extremely well by entrepreneurs around the world looking for a compelling business opportunity,” said Javier Parraga, President of Intero International Franchise Services, LLC. “Because of the innovative spirit that drives the company, we’ve been able to present a compelling picture that other, more traditional brands cannot.”

Concludes Blefari, “2009 was a difficult year in many ways, but served to validate our vision for a different kind of real estate organization guided by an innovative sensibility that produces results.”

About the Intero® brand

Founded in 2002 Intero Real Estate Services, Inc. has quickly become one of the premier real estate brands in the U.S. Today, the Intero® brand  has over 1,800 agents and 40 company owned and franchise offices covering California, Colorado, Nevada and Texas. The company is private and headquartered in California’s Silicon Valley.

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Intero Insider: Selling Short? Keep Track of Everything

By Gino Blefari | February 17th, 2010 0 Comments

It’s that time of year again. The Winter Holidays are behind us, we’ve cheered a new Super Bowl champion and exchanged boxes of chocolates for Valentine’s Day. That can only mean one thing: Tax Season is upon us.

When it comes to your home, there is plenty of documentation of which you need to keep track when it comes time to file your annual return. For those of you filing “standard” income tax returns, this is all fairly clear and straightforward.

With the current real estate climate, however, there are scores situations, like having lost a home to foreclosure, or staring personal bankruptcy in the face, in which many never thought they’d find themselves. Situations like these can make filing taxes a bit trickier.

There’s one circumstance in particular on which I’d like to focus today:

Short sales.

If you’ve gone through the short sale process (where you can no longer afford the payments on your home, but your lender allows you to sell the home at loss, rather than go through with foreclosure), then you know it’s long, it’s arduous, and it’s one in which things have the potential to be very murky.

When completing the reams and reams of paperwork required by your lender to complete the short sale process, it’s likely that you signed a promissory note, or other like document, granting the lender the right to take action against you to collect the deficient amount. This is pretty standard. It’s possible, though, that you also got a copy of a document with the heading 1099-C, which the lender has filed with the IRS, indicating that the unpaid portion of the loan has been canceled. This is a trigger for the IRS to assess taxes against the forgiven debt.

Wait. What?

“How is that possible?” you might ask. Good question. It doesn’t stand to reason that a lender can pursue you for unpaid debt and that the IRS can assess taxes, as well. Logic would dictate that one or the other is reasonable, but not both.

Keep copies of everything having to do with anything related to the transaction.

If you signed paperwork indicating that the lender can take collection action against you, but you’ve also received a 1099-C for the uncollected debt, you’ll have plenty of documented proof to show the IRS that you don’t owe taxes on that amount. Similarly, if there is nothing in your sale paperwork that gives the bank the right to collect the debt, nor is there any other reference to it, the 1099-C will serve as evidence should the bank, at some point, decide to take action against you.

They can’t have it both ways.

I’m not a tax professional. I’m not certified to give that sort of advice. But I can advise you to seek the counsel of a tax professional, so that negotiating the maze of tax ramifications that come with a short sale is made somewhat easier.

For additional information you can also download IRS Publication 4681 from the IRS website at www.IRS.gov

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Intero Insider: Closing The Door on 2009

By Gino Blefari | December 29th, 2009 0 Comments

The Holiday Season is approaching its end. Hopefully, you’ve been able to relax a bit and spend time with family, friends and the people whom you love most. The end of this season signals the rapidly-approaching end to yet another year. A year that most of us are more than ready to put behind us. We’re all looking forward to the promises of the new year. A fresh start. New possibilities. To 2010.

But let’s take a moment to reflect on the year that was 2009, and how it shaped us and our industry.

2009 was a year of change. A change in the way people shop for homes. A change in the way real estate professionals do business. A change in the way we look at things.

Certainly, the economy and its woes played a major role. While there are glimmers of light and signs of improvement on the horizon, rising unemployment (that will likely worsen a bit more before it gets better) and more stringent lending standards continued their stranglehold on the real estate industry.

Mortgage rates found themselves at all-time lows in 2009, but with underwriting restrictions and tightening standards, including tougher rules from places FHA, typically thought more “understanding”, very few people were able to qualify. With the Federal Government’s loan modification program, short sales and a flood of foreclosures with which to deal, banks are not likely to loosen these standards anytime soon.

Of course, the news wasn’t all bad.

With those foreclosures and short sales came some incredible opportunities for those looking to buy a home. For those with open minds and who were willing to exercise a little bit of patience, deals, the likes of which hadn’t been seen in decades, were ripe for the picking.

For those who were really lucky, those deals could be combined with what was (and will likely continue to be) one of the biggest stories in real estate: the Homebuyer Tax Credit. Recently expanded to include a far broader pool of buyers, the HBTC, in 2009, gave first-time homebuyers a credit of up to $8000 when they purchased a new home. For many, this credit was just the boost necessary to get them toward their share of the American Dream.

While 2009 saw nowhere near the panic and angst that riddled Wall Street and the entire real estate industry in 2008, it was a year of sobering news. A year of goodbyes to the old way of doing business. It was a year for real estate professionals to reevaluate their priorities. To rethink how they did things. It was a year of separating the wheat from the chaff, as many Realtors left the profession altogether. Those who dug in their heels, who opened their minds to new practices, who opted to help, rather than hinder, will rise to the top. They will reap the fruits of their labor.

As you’re making your resolutions for the New Year, think about where we’ve been. About how far we’ve come. Think about how you’ll do things differently. Think about the possibilities before you.

Yes, 2009 was a hard year.  But remember our theme for 2009 – “Adversity is your asset. Things turn out BEST for those who make the BEST of how things turn out.”…AND WE DID! So rather than looking back at 2009 as just a “tough year” let’s make it a year in which we have learned. A year that strengthened our resolve, and our collective character. 2010 is OUR time, now let’s go out and TAKE IT!

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Intero Insider: Sweeping Changes Coming to the HVCC

By Gino Blefari | December 23rd, 2009 0 Comments

While we’ve all been focused on the Homebuyer Tax Credit and the effect that foreclosures have had on the real estate market, Congress has been hard at work, trying to right some unintended wrongs.

For some time now, the home buying process, already strained by the desperate straits of our nation’s economy, has been made more difficult than necessary as a result of unofficial “rules” put in place by Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac. These “rules”, known as the Home Valuation Code of Conduct, were put in place to reduce abuse by appraisers, who’d been under pressure from lenders, real estate professionals, sellers … you name it, to make sure that a particular house appraised for a certain amount (whether that amount had any basis in reality or not).

But while paved with good intentions, the HVCC’s road was littered with potholes.

The HVCC put the onus on lenders to order appraisals. It also required that lenders stay out of the process; that they not exert any influence over the appraisal. This has led to the use of appraisal management companies, which, for lack of a better description, are like brokers for individual appraisers. The AMC (appraisal management companies) gets an order for an appraiser, then assigns someone to take care of the job. The big problems here are that, more often than not, appraisers are being assigned to value homes in communities and neighborhoods with which they are wholly unfamiliar. Also, the use of the management companies requires the splitting of appraisal fees, causing appraisers to cut their rates and putting many experienced appraisers out of business.

Complaints about the HVCC have run the gamut from inaccuracy in valuation, “lowball” appraisals, to inexperienced appraisers (not to mention a host of other complaints). As a result, many sales have been adversely affected.

It looks like that may be about to change.

The US House of Representatives has been hard at work on its financial and mortgage industry reform bill. It has voted to terminate use of the HVCC, pending the initiation of a new Consumer Financial Protection Agency. The House’s bill, now on its way to the Senate, requires the director of this agency to implement national sales rules and standards that will cover all transactions.

Once the new standards are in place, Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac will be barred from using their much-maligned rules.

How the Senate will handle the creation of this new agency (if it goes along with it at all) remains to be seen, but the House bill is a clear signal that the HVCC is all but dead in the water.

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Intero Insider: Bringing the American Dream Home With 203k Loans

By Gino Blefari | December 16th, 2009 0 Comments

The American Dream. Own a home. Provide for your family. Be part of a community. These are things that each of us want. For many, however, achieving that dream has become harder over the past couple of years.

There are lots of homes for sale. There are lots of homes that are priced incredibly well. More and more of these homes, however, are in desperate need of repair and renovation. Whether the result of age and general neglect, or whether the homes have been gutted by previous owners, the result is the same: the cost of renovations almost immediately puts the reasonably-priced home suddenly out of reach.

But there is a solution: the FHA 203k mortgage loan.

The 203k mortgage offers all of the great benefits of FHA financing, but also covers the costs of renovation. Imagine! The possibilities have tremendous implications for homeowners and their sense of pride, not to mention the benefits to our nation’s economy.

Intero is committed to helping rebuild The American Dream. Intero is committed to rebuilding communities. We’re committed to helping create jobs. We’re committed to YOU.

The financial crisis with which our country is dealing has left many homes distressed. These homes often stand empty, causing neighborhoods and communities to degenerate. The 203k mortgage loan gives homebuyers the opportunity to buy these homes and take advantages of their remarkably low prices, and then pour into them the TLC that they so desperately need. Through this program, they’ll infuse new life into these neighborhoods. They’ll stimulate the economy. And they’ll achieve pride in ownership.

With RE-buildUSA, a program designed to raise consumer awareness and help Americans enjoy the benefits of this incredible opportunity and Lowe’s home improvement centers, we will be able to educate consumers about possibilities that are out there.

Each of our real estate professionals is going through training to become certified 203k mortgage specialists. We will be the experts. As is our goal in everything, we will be mounting the charge head-on to help RE-build our nation’s economy, one homeowner at a time.

The American Dream. It’s out there. With Intero & the 203k mortgage loan, you can achieve it.

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Intero Foundation

By Intero Real Estate | October 1st, 2009 0 Comments

Intero Foundation

Intero Foundation donates more than $100,000

The Intero Foundation recently donated more than $100,000 to non-profits that benefit children in the Bay Area.

Among the recipients were Rape Trauma Services in Burlingame, Family Connections in San Carlos and Morgan Hill’s Learning and Loving Center, which provides educational opportunities and outreach to immigrant women and their children in south Santa Clara County.

As part of the donations last week, Gino Blefari presented a check to the Lincoln High School Foundation to support a school program, Future Vision Mentoring Program, which helps students in crisis.

The Intero Foundation’s mission is to create awareness in the community by demonstrating good corporate citizenship and to impact the growth and well being of children.

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